Member for Mallee, Dr. Anne Webster, has written to landholders whose farms, environment, amenity and safety on their land is threatened by the VNI-West transmission project and proposed wind turbine installations, encouraging them to make a submission to the State Government’s Developing the 2025 Victorian Transmission Plan.
“I’ve just seen the map and despite earlier indications of six Victorian Renewable Energy Zones, clearly Mallee is the prime target in Labor’s sights,” Dr Webster said.
“Just this week visiting Charlton, Donald and St Arnaud, I met with one justifiably upset lady whose farm is in the VNI-West pathway and she’s been driven to tears by Transmission Company Victoria’s behaviour.
“Farmers have had to pursue legal advice or become experts in their non-existent spare time on energy, planning, property and other laws and regulations to know their rights.”
The Victorian Government’s consultation map (see, Figure 1) shows the “Tier 1” focus of Victoria’s REZ plans are largely in the east of the federal electorate of Mallee. The Victorian Government says Tier 1 means:
“We will prioritise these areas to investigate for future renewable energy generation and transmission infrastructure, based on the combination of high opportunities and low constraints for wind and solar.”
By contrast to figure 1, a 2021 Directions Paper (Figure 3) indicated 6 Renewable Energy Zones under investigation.
“Wind prospect mapping has consistently shown that coastal areas and those with high elevations have the best prospects for wind energy, not the River Murray tributaries and floodplains that are ‘Tier 1’ according to the Government,” Dr Webster said.
“Remember that Victoria’s wind strategy previously stated – until they hid it – that 70 per cent of Victoria’s prime agricultural land would be needed for energy generation and transmission projects if offshore wind can not proceed.
“We are seeing offshore wind hitting serious community and environmental objections, yet somehow the views of coastal Australians matter more than my constituents? Our food security and GDP are at stake here and it is high time Labor listened to and governed for all Australians.
“Furthermore, what are Tier 1’s ‘low constraints’? Labor has misconstrued and failed to pay attention to the pushback, the lack of social licence and the destruction of agricultural confidence caused by their blatant arrogance. I won’t have Mallee residents, their legitimate concerns and their rights called ‘low constraints’! Little wonder TCV are using heavy-handed tactics and big dollars on offer to landholders just for transmission and generation proponents to get access to their land. This cowboy behaviour is being spurred on by the Allan Labor Government saying ‘X marks the Spot’ in my electorate of Mallee.
“The Albanese and Allan Labor Governments are weaponising this issue with their reckless rush to renewables while retiring baseload power and jeopardising future gas investment. Mallee farmers, landholders and communities are the collateral damage, the pawns in Labor’s political power play to save their seats from the Greens in the inner cities.”
Dr Webster encouraged Mallee community members to upload their submission on the proposal at https://engage.vic.gov.au/victransmissionplan
Submissions to the Victorian Transmission Plan close 25 August 2024.
This article appeared in The Buloke Times, 30 July 2024
